of America

A Proclamation

From the Viking voyages a millenium ago to the myriad Scandinavians who have come here in more recent times, the Nordic people have made an indelible contribution to the greatness that is America. Danes, Finns, Icelanders, Norwegians and Swedes landed on our East coast and went West, expanded our frontier, tamed the prairie and helped make America the great Nation it is today.

To give recognition to those Scandinavians who had a part in the making of America, a nation-wide series of events will begin in September, called ``Scandinavia Today.'' These events will describe the Nordic gift to the American heritage and will underscore the achievements of those nations in science, art and government.

We have received much from Scandinavia: The Icelandic sagas are monuments of literature; Niels Bohr was a vital link in modern science; Jan Sibelius was one of the giants of music; and Edvard Munch gave the world the visual beauty of his art. They offered us much. Yet, for America, there is more still. The immigrants from Nordic countries infused us with their cultural and intellectual wealth and balanced their traditions with those of immigrants from other countries to help give America its enormous strength and unique resilience. It is fitting that we honor all of their contributions during this special week.

Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate September five through September eleven, 1982, as Nordic-America Week.

I invite the people of the United States to honor these Nordic nations during that week by holding appropriate ceremonies throughout the land and in participating in the many events of the ``Scandinavia Today'' program through the year.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-two, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and seventh.

Ronald Reagan

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:23 a.m., August 30, 1982]

Note: The text of the proclamation was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on August 27.